WEBVTT WHEN HE IS IDENTIFIED, HE WILLFACE CHARGES.THIS PHOTO CAUGHT THE SUSPECTFLORENCE POLICE ARE NOW LOOKINGFOR.THE MAN AND HIS LATE TEENS OREARLY 20'S CAN BE SEEN ON VIDEO,LIGHTING FIRECRACKERS IN FRONTOF TWO RESTAURANTS INSIDE THEFOOD COURT.>> THEY KNEW WHAT HE WAS DOING.THEY WERE NOT ALARMED.EMILY: FOR PEOPLE ON THE EDGESOR OUT AT THE FOOD COURT, THEECOWAS ENOUGH TO SEND SHOPPERS-- ECHOES WERE ENOUGH TO SENDSHOPPERS SCATTERING.PEOPLE WHO WERE SITTING INTHE MALL WERE EITHER RUNNING ORGETTING UNDER THE BRUTES --BOOTHS WERE RUNNING TO THEBATHROOMS.EMILY: HE SAW THE POLICEPRESENCE AND TIGHTENED MALLSECURITY.>> PEOPLE WERE TENSE.THEY HAD THEIR GUARD UP.WHEN YOU WALK AROUND THE MALL,YOU SEE HAPPY FACES.THIS TIME, IT WAS DIFFERENT.THERE WAS A SENSE OF FEAR.EVEN --EMILY: HE CAN UNDERSTAND WHYSHOPPERS WOULD THINK THE WORSTAND TAKE COVER.>> I WOULD HAVE THOUGHTGUNSHOTS.THAT IS A COMMON THING.IT IS A SAD THING TO THINKABOUT.THINGS LIKE THIS HAPPEN DAILY.TO INVOKE PANIC LIKE THAT, IT ISCHILDISH.EMILY: THE SUSPECTS WERE YOUNGCHILDREN.THEY ARE LOOKING FOR A MAN INHIS LATE TEENS AND EARLY 20'S

Capt. Tom Grau, with the Florence Police Department, said the fireworks were mistaken for gunshots, prompting a scare inside the mall.

Advertisement

“You can see in the video, the people right there who saw it happen were looking like, ‘Are you kidding?’ but down farther, people are either running or they’re getting under booths or running to the bathrooms or locking themselves in rooms,” Grau said.

It is believed that the firecrackers were lit near the food court of the mall, causing a panic inside.

Police said the reports of shots fired inside the mall resulted in a massive police response.

Grau said officers talked to several witnesses and were able to confirm through surveillance video that firecrackers – not gunshots – caused the brief panic.

Witnesses told investigators about the man’s behavior after he set off the fireworks.

“Whatever he had in his hand, he dropped it and actually had his phone out videotaping himself doing it and there are some other witnesses say when he was running out of the mall, he was videotaping himself running out of the mall as well,” Grau said.

Grau said they believe they know who lit the fireworks, and are interviewing witnesses.

So far, no arrests have been made.

Officials said they are searching for a black man with a stocky build in his late teens or early 20s in connection with the incident. He was last seen wearing a peach- or pink-colored polo shirt, gray shorts and white tennis shoes.

Micah King was outside the mall around 4 p.m. while police cruisers were still on there.

"Walking in, mall security was tight. There was a lot of people frantic acting like something crazy had happened," King said.

"People were really tense, people seemed like they had their guard up mostly when I walked around. Usually when you walk around the mall you see happy faces. This time it was different, you could tell that there was a sense of fear and intensity in the air."